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…What you can Do on Digg

July 22, 2008 by Jenn Sierra  
Filed under Web 2.0

mail.pngLast week, we discussed Ask Not what Digg can do for you… because the truth is that if you’re a political conservative online, Digg isn’t going to do anything to help you. We can’t ignore it, however, because it is still so influencial in what is percieved as the “truth” online (more).

So, you’re one of the brave conservatives who has decided to face the Digg Monster head-on. Now what? Following are some lessons we’ve learned the hard way. I hope you’ll be able to use them to improve your own Digg experience.

  1. First, you’ll need a Digg ID. For security and privacy reasons, you’ll need to choose a name that is not related to your real name, your blog, your place of business, your usual online profile, or your residence. Plus, if you’ll look through the UserID’s for the other Diggers, you’ll see that catchy, weirdly-spelled online nicknames are “cool” (and we all want to be “cool”).
  2. Do not immediately begin “friending” or becoming a “fan” of all of the conservatives you find on Digg. Digg has this thing called the “algorithm.” It’s basically a way for the Digg administrators to manipulate the content of the front page to please their investors, while pretending that all of the content is there because of the “democratic voting process.” This algorithm discounts votes for Diggs between friends.
  3. Look at the upcoming stories, and Digg/comment on those that you like. If you see stories that are stupid or false, bury them. Become active in the comments.

  4. You may be contacted by other conservatives to join groups to help promote conservativism oin the various social networking sites, like Digg. Join if you like, but with the foreknowledge that these groups are routinely infiltrated by Digg’s trolls, and they are usually rendered ineffective when Digg starts banning and banishing all of the members there. Digg calls this type of activity among conservative Diggers “gaming” the system, and considers it to be a bigger problem than terrorism.
  5. Submit several stories a month. Submitting stories from your own blog is fine, but be sure to also submit stories from other sources, and submit to various Digg sections (not just politics). Respond to rational commenters on the stories you submit if you like, but do not become embroiled in conflicts with “trolls” (trouble-makers). There are people on Digg who simply troll for entertainment - don’t give them what they’re looking for.
  6. Eventually, people on Digg will start to become your fans, and you will have the opportunity to respond by “friending” these folks. Be sure that when you respond to these offers, you friend Diggers with varied interests, in video, technology, etc.. (not just politics), and be sure that you are not just digging only your friends’ stories. (See #2). Doing this will help you be more of a member of the Digg community, rather than someone that is view as merely an obvious conservative “operative.” One note of caution - some Diggers who become your fans may be doing so just to watch what you post so they can bury it. (See #5)
  7. Finally, try to have fun while you’re there. Yes, it is possible, if you don’t take the whole process or yourself too seriously.

Remember, your goal is not to “fix” the thinking of Diggers whose political opinions are different from your own; instead, your goal is to make sure that the conservative viewpoint is represented on Digg, and online, so that when people are seeking the truth, they’ll be able to find it.

 

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7 Responses to “…What you can Do on Digg”

  1. Buffoon on July 22nd, 2008 2:02 pm

    You know I was just thinking about this stuff this morning. I have become a burying and digging fool, but I may need to refer to your number one and re-vamp myself….

    Good Newsletter, I’m more smarter now…

  2. Ron on July 22nd, 2008 2:49 pm

    That was some excellent advise Jenn! I learned some things.

  3. Faultline USA on July 22nd, 2008 3:21 pm

    Wow! How interesting. Guess I had better take note of #1 and #2!!! However, if Digg has this kind of anti-friend algorithm, what would be the point in friending a fan??? Now if you bury a story, doesn’t that just bury it on your own page, or does it lower it’s count???

  4. Jenn Sierra on July 22nd, 2008 3:22 pm

    Thanks, guys, for your kind words. I’m hoping folks will be able to avoid some of the mistakes I made on Digg in the beginning, and will have a more positive experience there.

  5. Jenn Sierra on July 22nd, 2008 3:25 pm

    Barb…that’s a good question. There are reasons to friend and fan people. It’s good to build a network on Digg. The purpose of becoming a “fan” of someone is so that you can follow what they’re posting, digging, commenting on, etc.. This can be done for digging or burying purposes. The purpose of adding someone as a friend is so that you can occassionally exchange “shouts” and bring certain stories to the attention of your friends.

    But, overuse of either of these stategies is counter-productive, because of the algorithm.

  6. Thomas Keeley on July 23rd, 2008 8:42 pm

    Great post!

    Digg can definitely be a great tool for sharing political opinion, but if you’ve used digg, it is quite easy to notice that there is a bias towards groups like ThinkProgress.org (see Digg user MakiMaki for examples).

    Another great way to help your story get popular is by sharing your post beyond the confines of the digg website.

    Many of the top digg users have links to various screen names and other networks that they use, build relationships with these people. Even if they don’t agree with you, they love to talk to new people.

    In terms of story submissions, this is where it seems that most conservative bloggers get in trouble. The best way to do (IMHO) is to submit 4 outside stories for everyone 1 story you submit from your site.

    Otherwise, you run the risk of being a flagged user. However, you usually don’t know that you’re a flagged user. But, if you submit stories that get 300 diggs in 12 hours and don’t become popular, odds are you’re a flagged user.

    Also, remember, Digg tracks IP addresses (proof:http://digg.com/iptest), so try and switch up the locations you submit from.

    Great post though!

  7. Jenn Sierra on July 24th, 2008 8:08 am

    Excellent information, Thomas…thank you so much!

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